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Fri, 16 Feb 2018 16:45:47 +0000en-UShourly1Austin Community College District recognized for online learning excellencehttps://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/austin-community-college-district-recognized-for-online-learning-excellence/
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ACC delivers nearly 500 courses each semester online. Online and hybrid classes offer students a convenient way to earn college credit. Course content and transferability is identical to classes offered on campus, giving students more scheduling options and a wider selection of classes to meet their needs. In the past year, ACC introduced Quality Matters, a nationally-recognized quality assurance standard in online learning to provide faculty the opportunity to enhance courses and programs that will translate to student success. Next steps include establishing ACC Online, a virtual campus with integrated student services.

]]>https://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/los-fondos-del-pell-grant-ahora-estan-disponibles-en-el-verano/feed/0Pell Grant funding now available in the summerhttps://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/pell-grant-funding-now-available-in-the-summer/
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“We understand that paying for college can be difficult for many,” says Terry Bazan, executive director of student assistance. “The availability of summer financial aid can assist with reducing the financial burden and help students stay on track with completing their degree.”

The priority deadline for summer financial aid is March 1. Based on an applicant’s eligibility, a full-time student can receive up to $2,960 in summer Pell Grant funding.

This regular feature recognizes activities and honors of ACC faculty and staff. To submit news or suggestions, see the contact information below.

Dr. Connie P. Williams, manager, Highland Testing Center, will be inducted into the the Austin Metroplex Chapter of National Women of Achievement Inc. at the fifteenth Biennial African-American Women’s Profiles of Prominence ceremony on March 31 for her achievements in and to contributions to the field of education.

Garry Gaber, chair of ACC’s Game Design, Animation and Motion Graphics department recently launched a new game, Starlight Tactics Unlimited. Starlight Tactics is a 3D turn-based tactical space combat game set 100 years in the future during a conflict which spans a star system. The free app is available on the App Store for iOS devices. As the owner of Escape Hatch Entertainment, Gaber wears many hats, from designing and programming to working on art assets.

Dr. Andres Tijerina, History professor, received the Best Paper Award at the fall 2017 conference of the International Organization of Social Sciences & Behavioral Research. Tijerina presented excerpts from the book manuscript that he is submitting for publication by Texas A&M University Press entitled “In the Shadow of the Dome: Slave Live in Austin, Texas.”

Successful giving campaign by CAD department

The American Society for Engineering Education student chapter’s food drive for Central Texas Food Bank at NRG and HBC collected 519 pounds of food, creating 433 meals for Central Texans in need. With every $1 donation creating four meals, monetary donations bring the total meals created up to 1,119 meals for Central Texans this past holiday season.

Warren Heatwole, professor of Construction Management, taught for 100 consecutive semesters at ACC. In the decades since he first stepped into a classroom at ACC, Heatwole has touched the lives of some 4,000 students. He’s served as department chair and professor. After more than 33 years leading a classroom, he isn’t ready to stop just yet.

On February 5, Dr. Cook attended the “Exploring, Discover your Future” event sponsored by the Capitol Area Council for Explorer Scouts and Friends of Explorers. There was a slideshow of the many Explorer troops in the region, including an ACC-sponsored Explorer STEM troop. The fundraiser produced over $40,000 for the area troops and student scholarships. ACC student Zoe Mattson received a $500 scholarship and shared her personal journey to a desired career in law enforcement. The second place winner Hannah Sanchez, a 16-year-old student at Stony Point High School who wants to be an EMT.

Francis Preve, adjunct professor in the MBPT program, was the sound designer for the newly released Korg Prolugue Synthesizer. He did a demonstration in January at the Korg booth at the National Association of Music Merchants conference in Anaheim, CA where the synthesizer was released to the public for the first time. NAMM is the world’s largest trade event show for the music products industry with over 100,000 attendees.

Michelle Fitzpatrick, department chair/faculty, Hospitality, Travel & Tourism, Meeting and Event Planning, graduated this past December with her Executive Masters of Hospitality from University of Houston.

Franklin Marciales Cardenas, adjunct professor, received his MBA in Sustainable Tourism from the University of Salamanca in Salamanca, Spain.

John D. Lancaster, PhD, program coordinator, Building Construction Technology, recently completed his third master’s degree. He has been teaching for the past four decades and has never lost his enthusiasm.

Doug Smith, A&E CAD professor and chair,follows the latest trends in technology to help every student succeed. His Youtube channel has over 2,300 subscribers and is used all over the world. Since 2012, it has received more more than 566,140 views and 1,621,000 minutes watched worldwide. Read more>>

Heather Barfield, Drama adjunct professor, has been awarded a 2018 UT Humanities Institute Community Sabbatical Grant to work on “Thirty Years of Truth and Thunder: An Archival History of The VORTEX, Austin’s Premiere Alternative Theatre.” Additionally, she has been accepted into ACC’s Center for Non-Profit Studies Certificate in Effective Fundraising course.

Drama adjunct professor Greg Romero‘s short play, Foxing, was presented as part of FronteraFest’s Short Fringe program, on January 31 at Hyde Park Theatre. Foxing was present again on February 10 as part of Mi Casa Es Su Teatro. Foxing received a commission from ScriptWorks. His short play, Big Iron Fires, was presented as part of FronteraFest’s Short Fringe program on February 9 at Hyde Park Theatre.

Rachel Atkinson, drama adjunct professor, designed the lighting for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime at ZACH Theatre. The show runs January 31 through March 4.

Do you know a faculty or staff member who has accomplished something notable outside the classroom or in their community? We want to hear about them. Contact Madelyn Duhon, madelyn.duhon@austincc.edu.

Beginning in the 1970’s, ACC’s Department of Drafting and Design taught future drafters, designers, architects and engineers how to use traditional drafting boards and drawing tools to create complex technical drawings. Then, in the mid-1980’s, AutoCAD, a computer aided design (CAD) software that could run on personal computers began to revolutionize the drafting field.

Enter Doug Smith, professor and program chair of the Architectural and Engineering Computer Aided Design (A&E CAD) department. Smith began working for ACC and helped lead the program through the adoption of CAD technology. By 1989, ACC was named Austin’s first Authorized AutoCAD Training Center by Autodesk, the publisher of the software.

Today, he continues to follow the latest trends in technology to help every student succeed.

Smith created a Youtube channel named Technical Drawing 101 with AutoCAD. It features more than 100 “how-to” videos and lessons reflecting the assignments in the class textbook. Since the channel’s debut in 2012, it has received more than 566,140 views and 1,621,000 minutes watched worldwide.

“I feel that in our role as educators, we should share this knowledge,” says Smith. While the majority of viewers of the YouTube channel are from the U.S., fourteen percent of views have come from India. Videos receive comments from people in developing countries saying “thank you” for making the information accessible and informative. Today, more than 2,300 users subscribe to the channel.

The channel helps students stay on pace with coursework and supports student success by allowing students to access expert instruction and commentary whether they’re in a classroom or working from home.

“It connects students directly with the material. They get one-on-one instruction in a virtual world. It means more students who need individualized help can get it,” says Smith. “Students love it, and watch videos outside of class. We constantly make new videos based on changing technology.”

Graduates of ACC’s A&E CAD program are highly sought after in part because ACC is one of the few community colleges in the nation that offers integrated circuit design and other complex CAD-related training.

“Someone created technical drawings or graphics for every chip in your cell phone, every road you drive on, and every new building you see under construction. Our graduates play an essential role in the local and national economy,” says Smith.

]]>https://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/using-youtube-to-boost-classroom-lessons/feed/0Lifelong learner and teacherhttps://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/lifelong-learner-and-teacher/
https://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/lifelong-learner-and-teacher/#respondWed, 14 Feb 2018 17:27:42 +0000http://sites.austincc.edu/newsroom/?p=45250Continue reading →]]>John D. Lancaster, PhD, is a lifelong learner, and has the teaching and learning experience to prove it. Lancaster, Program Coordinator and Professor in ACC’s Building Construction Technology program, completed his first degree in 1971, and his third master’s in fall 2017.

“I believe we can always learn new things,” he says. “I am constantly trying to improve my teaching skills and to motivate students. You are never too old to learn something.”

A self-described “average pupil” until high school, he felt a personal investment in his education once discovering the library in college. He then began his career in teaching at the secondary level in Boston and realized he wanted to continue his education to become an administrator in the education system.

Lancaster’s degrees are as diverse as his interests, and include a PhD in Education, master’s in English, master’s in technology management, master’s in Education, bachelor’s in history, certificate in Composition Studies, certificate in Carpentry, and an associate’s degree in Building Construction Technology. He is also a licensed builder.

“It’s all connected. We are all literacy teachers,” he says when asked how he became involved with building construction technology.

Lancaster has been teaching for the past four decades and has never lost his enthusiasm. At ACC, Lancaster teaches management, estimating, and classes that deal with reading, writing, and presentation skills. He continuously seeks out innovative teaching strategies and alternative ways of assessment to make his classroom a diverse learning environment.

“I am constantly researching ways to enrich the classroom experience,” he says. “I’m still working at the craft of teaching. Every day is a learning experience.”

ACC Elgin Campus celebrated the grand opening of Phase 2 on February 6. View photos from the event here. The expansion includes specialized facilities for the college’s Veterinary Technology and Sustainable Agriculture Entrepreneurship programs. The expansion features an 18,500-square-foot academic building with a surgical clinic, small animal wards for the vet tech program, a state-of-the-art processing kitchen and market for the sustainable agriculture program, and teaching spaces. It also includes an 11,000-square-foot outbuilding with space for washing and handling crops and storing farming equipment. The outbuilding also holds covered pens for larger animals and a cattle chute. The facilities will provide students with hands-on experience as they will be able to grow and place crops into a farmer’s market, and those in the vet tech program will work with dogs and cats from the animal shelter and livestock, including sheep.

Round Rock – Phase II new building and parking

Building 8000 will consist of a 200 computer ACCelerator lab, classrooms, and office space. This project also includes a new parking lot on the west side of campus. The parking lot has achieved substantial completion and is open to the public. Landscaping replacement is complete. Masonry repairs are ongoing. Building 8000 has power and the ACCelerator ceiling has been painted. Interior tape, float and paint is ongoing.

San Gabriel Campus progression

Installation of the wood ceiling grid commenced. Above ceiling work including the installation of fire sprinkler pipe, duct insulation, plumbing lines, vent/drain lines, chilled water piping and flushing, electrical conduit/boxes, and cable tray continued this month. Tape and float, block filler, primer, and paint at all three levels also continued.

The installation of access flooring at the ACCelerator commenced and is near completion. The installation of carpet flooring also commenced this month at the second and third floors east side. The installation of the traction elevator was completed.

“These faculty, staff, and administrators are outstanding and contribute so much to our ACC community through their hard work,” says ACC President/CEO Dr. Richard Rhodes. “Their commitment to our mission and students is evident in the insight and energy they bring to their roles.”

Recipients will be honored at the ACC awards dinner Thursday, March 29, 2018 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Austin. Visit the Faculty Development website for details about the dinner and to purchase tickets.

Leadership Awards

ACC celebrates outstanding staff who demonstrate strong leadership and who have gone above and beyond the duties listed in their job description for the ACC community.

Teaching Excellence Awards

The ACC Teaching Excellence Awards honor one full-time and one adjunct faculty member who promote special learning opportunities, student interaction, depth/breadth of knowledge in a subject area and innovation.

eFaculty of the Year Award

This award recognizes an outstanding ACC Faculty member who has creatively utilized appropriate Internet-based technologies to teach online and/or hybrid courses at ACC. The recipient designed and taught one or more online or hybrid courses with an imaginative approach, well-designed course materials, instructional strategies, and a demonstrated rapport with the course participants.

Piper Professor Nominee Award

The Piper Professor Nominee Award is a statewide award that recognizes outstanding full-time faculty in the teaching profession. Higher education institutions must be invited to submit a nominee and only ten professors are selected to receive this award each year.

Shirin Khosropour, Professor, Psychology

The John and Suanne Roueche Excellence Awards

In recognition of the long tradition of excellence in community college teaching and leadership, the John & Suanne Roueche Excellence Awards celebrate outstanding contributions and leadership by community college faculty and staff. Selected by a committee, recipients will be recognized at an awards dinner at ACC and have the opportunity to attend the League for Innovations Conference in the spring.